BSS 6th Pick Tournament Finale: Kris Dunn faces Buddy Hield

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Published: June 17, 2016

Well that turned quickly. Kris Dunn crushed Jaylen Brown, taking 70% of the vote, while Buddy Hield destroyed Denzel Valentine, taking 69% of the vote.

So – in perhaps a predictable turn of events, we have our finale. Dunn v Hield.

Let the battle commence!

Kris Dunn

by Jake Madison

Yes the final is Kris Dunn against Buddy Hield, but I want you to ignore them for a second. I want you to think about Anthony Davis. That’s because Davis is the center, and everything this team does must revolve around him.

Of the two players left in our 6th Pick Tournament there is one who a clear better fit with Davis: Kris Dunn.

I’ve hammered home the point in the previous rounds that big men need a good guard to go along with them. Especially on the pick and roll–where Dunn is an absolute beast–and, unfortunately, we haven’t seen that with Jrue Holiday. Davis isn’t creating the offense for himself.

Dunn has the size at 6’4″ with a 6’9″ wingspan to be that complementary player. He has freakish athleticism with gives him an insane burst off the dribble. Where, by the way, he’s an above average shooter. The lane is clogged? With Dunn’s leaping ability he can actually shoot over taller defenders. Watch his highlights, he doesn’t need much room to get his shot off. Is he as good a shooter as Hield? No. But 37% from three isn’t something to thumb your nose at, either.

Now, think about Alvin Gentry. Think about those Suns teams. That offense that he wants to bring here. It sums up well in a single word: Transition. Transition is where Dunn spent a lot of his possessions in college. He uses his wingspan to force opponent turnovers and his size and speed to finish in transition. He’s going to fit in perfectly.

Basically he’s Russell Westbrook-lite. And averaged over 6 assists per game. There is no ball stopper here.

And one last thing on Dunn: Defense. He can actually play it. His size and athleticism will help him stay in front of speedy guards. His propensity to force steals will make it easier on the other four players on the court. There are two sides of an NBA game. Dunn can play both. Something that Hield will struggle with.

And speaking of Hield before Ryan gets to him! I get the love for his shooting. I truly do. But you know what? This team has had shooting before. They’ve had Eric Gordon and Ryan Anderson. Those guys haven’t been game changers. Nice pieces, absolutely. But you want more than that from the 6th pick.

Yes, Hield got to the rim in college, but he’s a bit undersized, doesn’t have great athleticism, and struggled to turn the corner on quicker guards he played against. And once he comes to the NBA every player is going to be bigger, stronger, and more athletic than those he played against in college. He’s simply not going to get to the rim as much.

Plus, shooting can be found elsewhere in the NBA (think Anthony Morrow). Don’t vote for a one dimensional player at 6. Vote for Kris Dunn.

Buddy Hield

by Ryan Schwan

Do you know what happens when your point guard can’t shoot a lick? Utter and complete failure in today’s NBA.  Defenders go under the pick, meet the guy trying to turn the corner, and the pick and roll is snuffed dead. It really is that simple: guards in today’s NBA need to shoot.  Look at these playoffs.  Yes, we are watching an NBA Finals that stars two lead guards with unlimited range, but do you know how many playoff teams fielded a starting point guard who shot under the league average from 3 this season? 2.  Only two of the 16 teams. (Westbrook and Dragic)

Now look at the two guys you are deciding between here.  Can you guess which of these two prospects is described as a suspect shooter?  Who only shot 69% from the free throw line? (FT% is a better predictor for shooting by the way)  That would be Kris Dunn.  Who, by the way is already 22 and still hasn’t figured out how to shoot.  This is the guy were going to hand the keys to our offense to if we draft him.

And yes, I can already feel tweets coming like: “Huh? . . . but all doz hawt passez!”, and “U just jelly at Duns mad bball IQs.”, and “U so hot, DM me and we’ll meet at Arby’s and -” . . . uh . . . sorry, wrong tweet.

Look, Dunn gets some assists because he dominates the ball.  So does Tyreke, but are you ready to give the keys to that guy?  Combine a pretty pedestrian assist rate with a high turnover rate, and you’re not exactly looking at the next Chris Paul.  Probably not even the next Jeff Teague.  (In related news, Teague is very available again.)

“But all doz stealz! and D!” the tweets will squawk.  Sigh.  I want you to ask yourself a few questions about that.

What makes you smile when watching basketball?  Is it watching a guy push past a screen to chase a ballhandler into the paint so he can be in position to bother a pass?  Or is it watching a guy bury a three with a hand in his face?

Is it a guy angling a defender baseline for help on drives, or a guy nailing a 30-footer, displaying ridiculous range?

I’m pretty sure I know your answer to that.  And you do too if you’re being honest.

Hield’s shooting is ridiculous.  RIDICULOUS.  You all lust after a shooter like Dame and wish he fell to us in the AD draft?  Hield can be that shooter.  He can hit from that far.  And in college – you know what he did when the other team closed out on him?  He got to the rim, finished at a high rate, and got fouled. (I had to emphasize that because, being a Pels fan, you may not be aware guards can get free throws) More than 5 attempts a game.  There’s a reason why his TS% was through the roof – and it wasn’t just because of all the threes he hit from everywhere.

Hield is a ready made, high-motor compliment on the wing in a starting line-up AND a capable Jamal Crawford-style offensive option for a second unit.  He is a walking, defined role on offense that will help the Pelicans no matter what.

Dunn?  What is he going to do?  Dribble into a double team?  Try to finish over the trees?  Turn the ball over like he did more than 3 times a game last year?

Why would you want to watch that?  More, why would you want that at all?

Vote Hield.

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